1. Related Applications
none
2. Field of the Present Disclosure
This disclosure relates to the field of fire safety apparatus and more particularly to apparatus for preventing flames and smoke from penetrating a wall through a hole formed to pass pipes, cables or the like.
3. Description of Related Art
The following art defines the present state of this field and each US disclosure is hereby incorporated herein by reference:
Radke et al., U.S. 2003/0009961, discloses a cast-in-place pass through firestop device for providing a passage in a partition in a structure through which wires, cables, pipes, and the like are run that includes a housing having a riser portion with frangible connections that define removable bands that can be readily removed by a user to adjust the height of the device in accordance with the thickness of the partition into which the device is installed. The removable bands include pull tabs that provide grasping means to facilitate removal of the bands by a user along a frangible connection. The housing also includes a base portion including a recess with ribs for maintaining the firestop material in spaced relation from the base portion sidewall.
Beele, U.S. 2004/0045233, discloses a sealing system comprising an at least substantially cylindrical tube and at least two sealing collars at least partially made of an elastic material, which are arranged round the tube in spaced-apart relationship for sealing confinement by collaring of the tube in a bushing which is co-axial with the tube, a special feature being the fact that the spacing between the sealing collars is less than 25 mm, the sealing collars comprising an expandable material, in such an amount and of such a composition that the sealing collars will expand in the case of a fire, in such a manner that they will become wedged in the bushing.
Harbeke, U.S. Pat. No. 4,669,759, discloses a fire-stop stack fitting that includes a cylindrically-shaped coupling wall having a stop therein for receiving pipes to be coupled from first and second ends. The first end of the cylindrically-shaped coupling wall is affixed to a cavity forming wall defining a cavity which is open in an inwardly radial direction and in a first-end axial direction but which is closed in an outwardly radial direction and in a second-end axial direction. An attachment flange is affixed to the first end of the cavity-forming wall for attaching the fire-stop stack fitting to a concrete form. An intumescent material is placed in an intumescent-material cavity and the flange of the fire-stop stack fitting is fastened to a concrete form wall. After concrete has hardened and the form wall is removed, pipes are inserted in opposite ends of the cylindrically-shaped wall. The intumescent-material is quickly heated by fire on the first side of the wall since the intumescent-material cavity is open to that side and the intumescent material is free to expand radially into the pipe inserted into the first end of the fitting.
Robertson, U.S. Pat. No. 5,309,688, discloses a penetration unit for a concrete slab including a hollow housing open at one end for receiving a service line or pipe, and provided at its other end with an enlarged opening surrounded by an annular flange which enables connection of the housing to formwork defining the boundary the concrete slab. The housing defines a hollow space in which the service line or pipe terminates and may be connected to a further line or pipe such as an elbow. A puddle flange may be located about the service line or pipe and engage the housing. Intumescent material may be located in the hollow space surrounding the pipe or line.
Rajecki, U.S. Pat. No. 5,390,465, discloses a device for installation in a building wall or floor to provide a passthrough opening for pipes, tubing, and the like that includes an axially open first end and a second end closed by a transverse wall. A ring of intumescent material fills the axially open first end of the housing, and in one embodiment, a foam plastic filler material substantially fills the housing between the intumescent ring and the transverse wall. The intumescent ring can be provided with a central opening sized to engage with an interference fit a tube or pipe passing through the device. Alternatively, the ring can support a tube coupling for providing a tubular connection within the device to receive and couple pipes on opposite sides of the building wall or floor in which the device is installed.
Ward, U.S. Pat. No. 5,456,050, discloses a sleeve configured to be assembled through a wall-breaching hole so as to prevent the passage of flame and smoke therethrough. The sleeve has a barrel with a fixedly secured flange on one end thereof. An intumescent sheet material is adhered to the inner and the outer surface of the barrel. After passing the barrel through the hole in the wall, a second flange is mounted on the second end of the barrel. Each flange is fastened to a respective side of the wall through a series of holes in the flanges. Each flange has a series of circumferential tabs adapted to being bent inwardly and has a ring of intumescent putty within the tabs and a second ring of intumescent putty on its wall-facing surface. When the sleeve is installed and secured to the wall, a utility-carrying conduit is passed through the barrel and the tabs are bent inward to support and closely surround the conduit. In the presence of heat the intumescent material expands to fill any gaps between the sleeve and the conduit and between the sleeve and the wall so as to prevent the passage of smoke or flame.
Cornwall, U.S. Pat. No. 6,405,502, discloses a firestop coupling assembly for allowing the passage of utility members through a hole in a partition while preventing the transmission of fire and smoke through the hole. The coupling assembly includes a coupling and a firestop extension. The firestop extension has a housing with an inner passageway. Intumescent material is mounted in the inner passageway of the housing. The firestop extension is mounted on the coupling such that the intumescent material extends downward beyond a second end of the coupling. When the coupling assembly is exposed to heat, the intumescent material expands into the inner passageway of the housing of the firestop extension and blocks the second end of the housing of the coupling which prevents the transmission of smoke and fire through the coupling assembly.
Miller et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,661,891, discloses a conduit assembly which has an inner sleeve and outer sleeve which are proportioned to be concentrically mounted, each of which has a longitudinal slot of approximately the same width. The conduits are circular, and a detent is provided on the larger of the conduits to accept and nestingly receive the slot of the smaller conduit when the same is rotated to form a complete circular encasement of the wires or cables which are passed through the conduits. The method of the invention contemplates the steps of forming a hole through a wall, such as a firewall, thereafter, optionally, passing the wires through, or passing the inner and outer sleeve through, and then once the wires are in place, or in anticipation of the wires being inserted, rotating the inner sleeve within the outer sleeve until the sleeve slots are approximately diametrically opposed and the central sleeve slot is secured in the detent. After the wires are in place interiorly of the conduit, a packing is inserted through the conduit assembly. Thereafter a blow out patch is secured to the exterior portion of the firewall on both side, and receives the end of the conduit assembly. The blow out patch, in turn, is secured to the firewall making a complete installation in which there are voids are minimized, which voids could pass smoke, fire, fumes, or other undesirables.
Cornwall, U.S. Pat. No. 6,470,635, discloses a firestop coupling assembly to allow the passage of utility members through a hole in a partition while preventing the transmission of fire and smoke through the hole. The coupling assembly including a coupling and a firestop extension. The firestop extension has a housing with an inner passageway. Intumescent material is mounted in the inner passageway of the housing. The firestop extension is mounted on the coupling such that the intumescent material extends downward beyond a second end of the coupling. When the coupling assembly is exposed to heat, the intumescent material expands into the inner passageway of the housing of the firestop extension and blocks the second end of the coupling which prevents the transmission of smoke and fire through the coupling assembly.
Munzenberger, U.S. Pat. No. 6,643,985, discloses a tubular lead-in fixture including an attachment element for a temporary attachment of the lead-in fixture, and an axially extending, radially widening region provided within an embeddable length of the lead-in fixture and limited by spaced from each other, radial shoulders, and in which an intumescent mass is received.
Radke et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,694,684, discloses a cast-in-place pass through firestop device for providing a passage in a partition through which wires, cables, pipes, and the like are run that includes a housing having a riser portion with frangible connections that define removable bands that can be readily removed by a user to adjust the height of the device in accordance with the thickness of the partition into which the device is installed. The removable bands include pull tabs that provide grasping means to facilitate removal of the bands by a user along a frangible connection. The housing also includes a base portion including a recess with ribs for maintaining firestop material in spaced relation from the base portion sidewall. A flame retardant char forming material, which works in combination with the firestop material to provide a fire, smoke, and water barrier, may also be provided adjacent the firestop material.
Stahl, Sr., U.S. Pat. No. 6,732,481, discloses an intumescent firestopping apparatus used in poke-through applications for selectively sealing an opening through a construction barrier such as a wall, floor or ceiling having cables or other penetrating members extending therethrough. The apparatus effectively seals this barrier responsive to a fire to prevent unwanted transmission of fire through conventional construction barrier areas. The apparatus includes a sleeve with two intumescent pads positioned therein. At least one of the pads has an arcuate curved central section to be biased against the other intumescent pad to define therebetween a confinement area for holding of cables centrally located therein in a dynamically adjustable sealing throat defined therebetween. These pads can be variously mounted with respect to the adjacent wall structures and one or both of the pads can be arched toward the other pad to facilitate defining of the dynamic throat for receiving cables extending therethrough.
Our prior art search with abstracts described above teaches the use of cylindrical hole liners with fire and smoke retarding components within walls for the prevention of fire and smoke movement between compartments. However, the prior art fails to teach the construction of an inexpensive conduit with substantial, structural end flanges, telescoping length adjustment and heat expansive collar with a ring for sizing the end of the tube for a particular conduit diameter. The present disclosure distinguishes over the prior art providing heretofore unknown advantages as described in the following summary.